The phone rang. A reporter wanted to interview the Coalition about a problem that’s been vexing medical patients with growing frequency: surprise jack-in-the-box bills for urine drug testing that patients assume their health policy covers.

The investigative story by the respected Kaiser Health Newsposted a couple of weeks later. A fine reporting job that featured Elizabeth Moreno. The Texas woman was handed a whopping $17,850 lab bill for a routine urine drug test her health insurer refused to pay because the lab was out of her health plan’s network.

In the story, experts described the lab’s bill as “real fishy,” “outrageous” and a “misplaced decimal point.”

The story took off. CNN posted it. So did the Washington Post, NPR and Money Magazine. Soon an avalanche of news outlets re-posted it — more than 420 at last count.

• Check with your insurer, doctor and hospital before getting treatment if possible. Ask for projected range of costs for planned medical procedures;

• Ask what provider and work your health plan will cover, and what’s out of network. Anesthesiologists, radiologists and pathologists are common examples of out-of-network providers who may be called into your case without your knowing.; and

• Afterward, get an itemized bill. Read it carefully, and check for procedures you didn’t receive. Your insurer also may help if you see surprise bills, so contact your insurer before writing any checks. Also see if the hospital has a patient advocate who can help.